Meet Shirlyn Huang | College Consultant & Mental Health Advocate

We had the good fortune of connecting with Shirlyn Huang and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Shirlyn, how did you come up with the idea for your business?
My city of Arcadia is known for “college-climbers.” For their children to get into the best colleges possible, many parents force their children into activities that take up a considerable amount of time, leaving students no time to pursue their other interests. For example, ever since the fourth grade, my dad has pressured me into qualifying for the American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME), so much so that I began to hate math and rebelled against my dad by pursuing the arts. Little did I know that my developed passion for theater would benefit my mental health and heal my love for math. I used the hard work I learned when studying math for theater, and I used the creativity I established in theater for math, bettering myself in both fields. So to me, it wasn’t one or the other; it could be both. But, my dad didn’t think this way. He considered theater a waste of time, and told me if I didn’t quit, I wouldn’t get into a top university. This mindset left many of my friends and peers to quit their artistic hobbies and talents to “college climb.” To rewire this fallacy, I created YourNarrative to provide students with an opportunity to pursue their artistic passions while still improving their “college resumes.” By donating their creations back to our community, our students are able to gain service hours and create a positive community impact (which colleges love), while bettering our community’s mental health as a whole!

What should our readers know about your business?
YourNarrative is a mental health organization I founded in the 11th grade to advocate for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, specifically SDG 3: Good Health and Well-Being. Along the way, I realized that my project tackled many more goals, such as SDG 13: Climate Action and SDG 4: Quality Education.
To be the most open and honest, I started YourNarrative because I was told I needed a “passion project” to get into a good college. I examined all the SDGs and found one I was already advocating for, SDG 5: Gender Equality. I have been a proud woman in the STEM community since my dad and I started practicing competition math together in the fourth grade, but as the years progressed, I saw more and more of the girls I was working with drop out for other activities–not because they weren’t interested in math, but because they were never encouraged. I was lucky enough to always have my dad as my backbone. So, gender disparity has been something I’ve always been aware of. After the overturning of Roe V. Wade, I knew I had to make a difference. Coincidentally, my friend was also planning on making a website detailing ways women could receive an abortion, especially in states with strict laws. We came up with a plan to call organizations and local clinics for their opinions on the matter, but were either left with no response or a denial to answer. After multiple rejections, our morale fizzled away. I talked to my counselor, and he told me that instead of tackling such a large problem right away, I should build up my project first so we can gain credibility.
With his help, I joined PlanUSA, an international development and humanitarian nonprofit that fights for girl’s rights. PlanUSA’s Youth Leadership Academy encouraged our cohort to think of modern solutions to a problem in our community, and after listening to my peers, I realized what I wanted to achieve in my city of Arcadia. Arcadia High School is known to be incredibly academic, leading many students to have problems with their self-esteem–I can personally identify with this. That was until I found a passion of mind outside of academics that helped me open up my past introverted shell: theater. I learned how to become emotionally open and vulnerable, I learned how to communicate, and I learned that there was more to me than the STEM-oriented, academic Shirlyn. After stepping out of my bubble, I realized that many of my friends also have an artistic side to them that they had to suppress due to the academic culture of our high school.
So, to tackle this problem, I founded what is now known as YourNarrative, an organization that promotes academic excellence and art at the same time! After getting into contact with my school’s Wellness Counselor we were able to get in contact with Arcadia Senior Services and USC Hospital. I asked them if they were open to receiving handmade art gifts from Arcadia students, and they said they were more than happy to! How it works is that every 1.5 months, we hold a donation drive. It’s a win/win situation. By providing our artists’ craft with an audience and genuine community impact (service hours included), I hope to preserve their childhood dreams of creating while still improving their college applications. By communicating with Arcadia’s elderly and hospital patients, I hope to preserve their smiles when they first open up their gifts throughout the day. I want to emphasize that it doesn’t have to be either the arts or sciences, and that women can continue to pursue STEM even if they have other interests. It’s a simple solution, but I find that happiness doesn’t always come from big gestures. So far, we have donated over 350 donations in crochets, Christmas gifts, paintings, letters, etc. The “Thank you, dear” I receive when I see the elderly loving the gifts is something I wouldn’t trade for the world.
Seeing that my project was successful in my local community, I wanted to bring it to a larger scale, so I competed in the Global Goals Challenge hosted by the United Nations. They asked students to create an app design that includes a project timeline, potential revenue, app features, and competitors to capture their project. Quickly, I got to work with Grace, my co-founder, and amazingly enough, we were able to become a Global Finalist. I asked my best friend Grace to be the co-founder of my mental health organization because she helped me not only get through the struggles I mentioned above but also helped me come out of them as a better person. So, I could not think of anyone better to help be a part of an initiative I truly cherish. YourNarrative was no longer a “passion project” I did simply for the sake of colleges, but it also became a lifeline: always reminding me that it’s okay to be both a “theater kid” and a woman in STEM, even when I received hurtful comments about being both.
But it doesn’t stop there, because our most recent project is a collaboration with The Ground Up Project and Minorities in Politics, two organizations that my friends in PlanUSA’s cohort founded. After months of preparation and action–reaching out to clubs and outside organizations–I’m proud to announce we have been able to donate over 3,500 pounds of clothing. In the next few months, I hope to bring our numbers to even greater heights and pass down my organization to Kayla, a current junior at Arcadia High School and proud supporter of YourNarrative. We plan to create a school-sponsored club to continue the legacy of developing artistic youth passions, women in STEM, and doing general good.

Currently, I work as a self-employed college consultant, so I can destigmatize the unknowns of the college application process and create a genuine impact in my friends’ lives. I charge a lot less than the market price to be able to help my community and others succeed. I am open to all students from middle school to high school, and can be reached through my email: huangshirlyn@gmail.com

If you had a friend visiting you, what are some of the local spots you’d want to take them around to?
If my friend were to come to Arcadia this would be the sights we would need to see.

1. Santa Anita Race Track
2. Westfield Santa Anita Shopping Center (I recommend “Mei Zhou Dong Po” restaurant for lunch or dinner)
3. Los Angeles County Arboretum & Botanic Garden (inside includes the Queen Anne Cottage and Coach Barn)
4. Universal Studious
5. Disney
6. All of the beaches (Santa Monica Pier)
7. Griffith Observatory
8. The Getty Center
9. Disneyland Park
10. The Huntington Library
11. Walt Disney Concert Hall
12. Little Tokyo
13. Koreatown
14. Chinatown
15. Downtown LA

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Kayla Chan has been one of the major donors to YourNarrative with her handmade crochets. Due to her help, I asked for her hand in chartering YourNarrative as a club, and now she is currently the President of YourNarrative in Arcadia.

Website: https://YourNarrative.org

Instagram: idksirloin

Linkedin: Shirlyn Huang

Other: Email: huangshirlyn@gmail.com or shirlyncollege@gmail.com